Heifetz, Jascha

(1901-1987) naturalized American violinist, he was born in Vilna, Lithuania. An amazing child prodigy, he graduated from the Vilna music school at the age of eight and became a pupil of Leopold Auer at the St. Petersburg Conservatory. After giving concerts in St. Petersburg, Odessa, Kiev, Berlin and Leipzig, Heifetz came to America, where his New York debut in 1917 helped to establish him as one of the greatest violinists of all time, celebrated especially for his phenomenal technique and sense of style.